John Peters At The End Of The Road

John Peters

Johnny Peters, the short stop, left town yesterday morning to join the Stillwater (Minn.) Northwestern League Club, with whom he has signed for the rest of the season.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, June 28, 1884


John Peters was an outstanding ballplayer going back to the amateur, pioneer era in St. Louis when he played with the Empires and Reds in the early part of the 1870s.  He was probably the best shortstop in baseball in the early days of NL but, by 1884, he was at the end of the road.  He hadn't hit well with Buffalo of the NL in 1881 but had a decent season with Pittsburgh in the AA in 1882.  And that was really it for Peters.  He got into eight games for Pittsburgh in 1883 and one game in 1884.  According to his entry in Major League Baseball Profiles, 1871-1900, Volume 1, Peters had put on a great deal of weight and this led to his decline as a ballplayer.  By 1884, he couldn't hit, couldn't field his position and couldn't find a job in the major leagues.  In 1885, he was out of professional baseball, although he continued playing with minor clubs in St. Louis for several years.